A month and a half ago, I was in discussions to ghostwrite a book for a semi-celebrity radio host on the west coast. After several phone conversations, first with his publicist and then with him, he was all set to move forward with the project when – BAM! – he lost his job, which means he also lost his best platform for promoting his upcoming book. And, yes, you guessed it, the book project disintegrated along with his misfortune. What I thought would be compensation to comfortably float me through early Spring of 2012, now equated to a big fat zero. Ouch!

Since the project had not started, there were no unpaid fees owed to me. It was a clean, done deal.

However, there have been writing projects I’ve worked on that were cancelled mid stream that did have fees attached to settle them. So how do you determine what—and if—you get paid when a project is cancelled? Read the rest of this entry

When I was the chief editor for a trade publication, nothing irked me more than to receive a badly crafted pitch letter from a freelance writer hoping to get an article published in our magazine. Conversely, if I received targeted, audience-specific pitches, I looked forward to awarding assignments to those writers on an ongoing basis. And those assignments paid pretty well for each 1500-word piece.

If you want to be given more magazine assignments – or attract your first – you’ll do well to perfect your pitches by keeping these things in mind: Read the rest of this entry

“As a writer, words are your paint.

Use all the colors.”

    ~Rhys Alexander

It was nearly impossible this weekend to turn on the television or read/listen to the news without being reminded that Sunday marked the 10^th anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States of America. From memorials to pictorials; from historic accounts to personal accounts, we were all taken back to the places we were and the feelings we felt on that horrific day.

Despite our economic challenges and all the political bickering about how to overcome them, I’m proud to be an American. My grandfather came to the U.S. from Poland at the age of 22 in search of something better and passed his belief in the promise of this country on to his sons and daughters, who passed them on to my generation. He journeyed into the unknown to sweep the first brush stroke across the canvas of a new family portrait. His hardships made our lives better. The attacks on September 11^th were meant to destroy but, instead, strengthened a nation built by men and women who also believed in the promise of this country.

I’m also proud to be one small part of a profession that finds the words to detail those news stories, documentaries, memoirs, and commentaries. As writers, we find the words to express our and others’ thoughts. As writers, we verbalize emotions that we and others feel. As writers, we share a talent and skill that can connect a group, a community, a nation and a world.

I know my Monday Muse ezine and this blog have a global reach and there are disasters worldwide that have affected each and every one of you in some way. Today’s post isn’t about making money or finding clients. Today I simply encourage you to capture your story of an event that has affected you personally or changed your view of the world you live in. You have the talent to document history of your or your family’s experience even if it will only be read by you.

Add your distinct colors to your family’s portrait.

If you like, feel free to share some of your thoughts in the Comments section of this post.

This past week I received an email from one of my regular blog readers who is getting ready to throw her creative hat into the freelance writing arena. After seeing last week’s post detailing my long day as a freelance writer (see www.writerprofits.com/a-day-in-the-life-of-a-freelance-writer) that was starkly void of any actual writing activity (other than a few emails), she questioned if a person really can make a good living at it. She also mentioned that she had been reading how copywriting is the freelancer’s best bet for establishing a freelance writing career and asked my opinion about it.

The answer to the first question is, “Yes, freelance writers can make a REALLY good living, not just scrape by.” My opinion about whether or not copywriting is the best way to go to earn those big bucks is… Read the rest of this entry